Rie Tachikawa Interview Full File

Did we miss a key question about Rie Tachikawa’s method? This is the most complete interview available in English. For updates, follow our newsletter—but Tachikawa would prefer you didn’t.

In the sprawling, chaotic tapestry of contemporary Japanese art, few threads are as delicate—and as structurally vital—as that of . While her peers often compete for attention through scale or shock value, Tachikawa has built a two-decade career on the opposite: subtraction. Her work, which spans installation, sound art, and what she calls "found object choreography," asks the viewer to listen to the space between words and look at the dust motes floating in a sunbeam. rie tachikawa interview full

(She picks up a glass of water from the table). This glass is half full. An optimist says it is half full. A pessimist says it is half empty. I say: Look at the space above the water, where the air lives. That space is filled with potential. In a gallery, people rush to the object. I want them to rush to the shadow behind the object. I learned this from kintsugi —the art of repairing broken pottery with gold. Everyone stares at the gold vein. But the gold is just the map. The true story is the break itself. The moment of dropping. The gasp. That is where the life is. Part 3: The Creative Process – "Controlled Neglect" I: Let’s talk about process. Your installations often look... precarious. Broken. Dusty. Is that aesthetic intentional? Did we miss a key question about Rie Tachikawa’s method

Exactly. Because real dust is random. Recreated dust is a memory of time passing. In my 2024 piece Hazy Protocol , I used a feather duster to trace the path of an imaginary housekeeper from 1932. The dust lines on the floor were not swept away—they were drawn back in . The audience walks on the dust. They become the housekeeper. They complete the loop. In the sprawling, chaotic tapestry of contemporary Japanese

No. I am a questioner . A story gives answers. I give clues to a mystery that doesn't exist. Part 2: The Full Philosophy of "Ma" I: Western critics often frame your work through the lens of "Minimalism"—Judd, Flavin. But you reject that. Why?

(Laughs) I know. I am sorry. Write it all down. But tell your readers: After you read this, close the laptop. Go sit in a room alone for ten minutes. Listen to the building sigh. That is my real interview. Part 5: Future Work & The "Un-Museum" I: What is next? Your website (which is just a black page with an email address) hints at a project called The Un-Museum .